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Surfing in Hermosa Beach, CA

Son John deep in the pocket

Deeper in the pocket

And another surfer

Son John about to get his lunch

When I was a boy, I used to surf here, at 22nd Street in Hermosa Beach, in front of Hoppy Swarts house, with his son Buzz, Gil Mueller, Barry Bagley and Rick Hatch. Rick’s gone now, but the others are alive. This spot was often visited by many long-ago greats including Mike Doyle, Dewey Weber, Lanze Carson, Henry Ford and many, many others. There was a reef off of 22nd that would help the waves when the swell was large, and the reef was uncovered. Leroy Gannis began his photo career here, and went on to world fame for classic photos of surfing in Hawaii and the Southern California coast in the 60s and 70s.

This year, the day after Thanksgiving, the surf was good, the barrels long and deep, and my number two son, John, and his friends caught a few. I used my favorite lens on a Canon 5DII, the 135mm with a 1.4 extender, which makes it a 194mm lens. Let’s call it 200 mm.